


and many more

by flightlesscrow



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Birthdays, Fluff, Fun, M/M, kurapika and leorio are kind of like gon and killua's guardians, small little family and their neighbor down the street have a good time, surpise parties, yea
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-05
Updated: 2017-04-05
Packaged: 2018-10-15 00:22:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10546854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flightlesscrow/pseuds/flightlesscrow
Summary: Today is Kurapika's birthday, and Leorio, Gon, and Killua throw him a surprise party, enlisting the help of Melody as well.





	

Gon and Killua woke up to Leorio flicking the light to their room on and off multiple times before leaving the light on. Killua groaned and sat up, rubbing his eyes to adjust to the sudden brightness in the room. Gon, on the other hand, had been awake for awhile. He was always prone to waking up early.

“What is it? It’s like…” Killua glanced at his alarm clock. “5 in the morning. Why do I need to be awake?”

“Keep it down!” Leorio hissed, checking the hallway to see if there were any disturbances before walking into the middle of the boys’ room. “We’re doing something important today.”    
  
“Really? What are we doing?” Gon asked excitedly, hopping down off the top bunk of the bunkbed he and Killua shared. He bounced on his feet in front of Leorio, staring intently at him as he awaited the details.

“It’s Kurapika’s birthday today, so we’re throwing him a surprise party. I need you two to help.” Leorio said. He sat down on Killua’s bunk while pulling away the covers, not willing to let the youngster go back to sleep just yet. Killua sat up begrudgingly and scowled, crossing his arms. He so wasn’t happy about being awake so early.

“Don’t we need more time to plan than that?” He asked grumpily.

“I only found out last night,” Leorio admitted sheepishly. 

“How long have you two known each other?” Killua asked. “And you’re just know figuring out his birthday?”   
  
“He never wanted to tell me before now! I knew it was around this time, just not the exact day,” Leorio said defensively. Killua looked like he had something else to say, but Gon flopped onto the bed beside him and poked him to prevent him from opening his mouth.

“Okay, we’ll help you get ready for Kurapika’s party!” Gon said. “Right, Killua?”   
  
“I guess,” Killua said.   
  
“Great! Gon, I’ll need you to get Kurapika out of the house for a little bit later today, so we can get ready.”   
  
“Got it!” Gon said, giving a big smile and a thumbs up to Leorio. Leorio smiled and ruffled his hair.   
  
“Killua, I’ll need you to help me decorate the house and bake a cake. Also, run to the store with Melody while the cake is baking and get refreshments and snacks.”   
  
“Is Melody Kurapika’s friend? The one who wears the hat a lot?” Killua asked.    
  
“That’d be her,” Leorio replied. Killua nodded, silently agreeing to his task.   
  
“Okay, that settles it-”    
  
“Wait!” Gon said. “How do I go about getting him to come with me? He tends to like staying inside.”   
  
“Ask him to take a walk with you around town. He’ll agree to take you out,” Leorio said. “Get ready for the day and meet me in the kitchen.”    
  
With that, Leorio walked out of the room, leaving the two boys to get ready. 

“It’s too early for this,” Killua grumbled, roughly pulling off his nightshirt and slipping a tank top over his head.    
  
“Ah, I think it’ll be pretty fun!” Gon said. He, somehow, was already dressed by the time that Killua had turned to look at him. Killua chose to overlook this fact. 

“It’s not that I think it won’t be, just, it’s so early…” Killua sighed as he pulled on a pair of shorts he found in his drawer.

“It’ll be later in no time! C’mon, don’t be a grump! It’s Kurapika’s birthday, so we should be happy for him!” Gon said. Killua nodded; Gon did have a point. Though, Gon was usually in a good mood anyhow, so Killua chalked it up to Gon just being himself.

“Kurapika takes so long to wake up,” Killua whispered as they tiptoed into the kitchen. “We could probably go shopping with Melody, us two together, while he slept and still have time to relax before he woke up.”    
  
“That’s probably true. I think the shops open at 6, and Melody is usually awake early judging by what time she calls in the morning. At least, I think that’s who’s calling Kurapika that early. No one else really calls him, since we’re usually always here with him.”    
  
“You’re right. We should buy him presents too. Maybe Leorio will give us some money to do that,” Killua said as they rounded the corner and entered the kitchen. 

“Give you money to do what?” Leorio asked as the two friends sat at the island in the kitchen. 

“Buy presents for Kurapika!” Gon said. 

“I suppose that wouldn’t be an issue. Can you pick up something for me? Well, it isn’t for me, but I don’t have time to run and buy it, so can you two buy it and bring it back here?” Leorio asked.

“Sure,” Killua said. “What’s for breakfast?”    
  
“Get some cereal. I assume you both want to go to the store, judging on the bits and pieces I heard of your conversation. You two don’t talk very quietly,” Leorio chuckled.

“Yep! Can you call Melody and see if she’ll take us? We wanna go while Kurapika is asleep.” Gon was climbing on the counter to get  bowls out of the cupboard, one for him and one for Killua. 

“Thanks,” Killua said. Gon hummed in acknowledgement. 

“Sure, just eat something quickly. She doesn’t live too far away from here.” Leorio went to the living room to ring Melody. By the time he came back, the boys’ bowls were almost finished. Leorio was always surprised to see them wolf their food down so quickly, no matter how often it happened.

“She said she’ll come pick you two up in fifteen minutes. I’ll give you some Jenny for the groceries and my gift, and you’ll each get some to buy your own gift.”   
  
“Thanks, Leorio!” Gon said, hopping down from his seat to put his bowl in the sink and get his shoes on.   


“Yeah, thanks,” Killua said, following suit. Leorio just smiled and washed the dishes. 

It was 6:20 when Melody came for Gon and Killua. 

“I’ll bring them back within two hours, is that alright?” She asked in her quiet voice. 

“Yeah, that’s fine. Pika won’t be up by then anyway,” Leorio said. 

“Oh? Do you have something planned?” She asked. Leorio glanced around before stepping outside and shutting the door. Gon and Killua were already walking towards the sidewalk.

“It’s Kurapika’s birthday today, so we’re throwing a surprise party. I need groceries but I have to set everything up. Speaking of, would you mind helping some more later when Pika leaves? I’ll call you when he does,” Leorio offered, hoping she’d say yes.

“That sounds wonderful! I’m sure he’ll appreciate it a lot. I’m free to help later, yes. Thank you for including me,” She said, expressing her gratitude. 

“Anytime, we really appreciate all your help as well. Anyways, you should probably get going before those two get lost,” Leorio laughed. Melody laughed with him.

“You’re right, that wouldn’t be good at all. See you later, Leorio!” Melody then walked off to catch up with the boys, who could be heard from where Leorio was standing. 

He walked back inside after she left through the front gate and sat down at his laptop. He wasn’t the best at making cards, and realizing that he forgot to ask the boys to get one, decided to make one online instead. At least this way he could customize it. 

He found a website that looked professional and got started. He was immediately bombarded with all sorts of designs and templates for him to choose from.

“This is gonna take a while,” He sighed out as he began looking through each template.

Meanwhile, Gon and Killua were searching for refreshments at the supermarket, with Melody’s help. Killua was pushing the cart while the other two brainstormed ideas. 

“What kind of drinks does he like?” Gon asked. 

“All I ever see him drink is coffee, and we have tons of that at home,” Killua said. 

“He likes sparkling grape juice,” Melody chimed in. “Also fizzy sodas. He told me that once.”   
  
“Okay, let’s head to the soda aisle then.” Killua led the two of them to that aisle. “Gon, can you go on the other side and pick some chips for the party?”    
  
“On it!” Gon said, saluting to Killua before running around to the next aisle. 

Killua and Melody picked some soft drinks for the party. They were putting them into the cart when Gon came back with three bags in his hands. One was a bag of popcorn (“Because who doesn’t love popcorn?”), another was a regular bag of potato chips, and the third bag was a bag of tortilla scoops. He put the bags in the cart and ran to grab some queso and salsa to go with them.

“What’d you guys pick?” He asked when he got back, gently setting the jars in the cart.

“Orange soda, some sparkling grape juice, and cola,” Melody answered.    
  
“They have books here, right?” Killua asked.    
  
“A small section, why?” Melody said in response.

“Leorio wanted me to buy a book. It’s newer and I thought it might be here,” Killua said.

“You go look for it, Gon and I will find other things,” Melody said. Killua nodded and headed off in search of the books.

“We’ll need some napkins and paper plates, and maybe they’ll have some party decorations! I know what I wanna get for him, too.” Gon had begun looking at the party supplies searching for the things they needed. He seemed to find what he was looking for, as he dumped an armful of things into the cart basket. 

“Okay, next to the candy aisle!” Gon said, pointing in the direction of the candy.

“Wait, shouldn’t we wait for Killua first?” Melody asked.

“I guess you’re right,” Gon said, visibly deflating. He was just excited to get what he wanted for Kurapika’s present.    
  
“Guys, I found it!” Killua called to them from the other end of the aisle. He ran to them and put the book in the cart. “Where to next?”    
  
“I want to go to the candy aisle.” Gon was already walking towards the candy aisle. Killua and Melody caught up with him. Somehow, poor Melody ended up pushing the cart. 

“What for?” Killua asked.

“It’s a secret!” Gon said, pressing a finger to his lips to signal that he wasn’t allowed to talk about it. Killua just huffed, nonetheless going along with it. 

Gon picked dozens of candies from the shelves. There were licorice bites, gummy candies, chewy ones, chewing gum, and chocolates of all varieties. He smiled to himself, knowing his idea would be a great one. 

“This is nearly all your money, Gon. What are you planning?” Killua’s curiosity was clawing away at him. He was dying to know what his best friend was up to, and was frustrated when he wouldn’t even give a hint. 

Melody was also curious, but was less impatient than Killua. “We’ll know when the party starts. Right, Gon?” She said, nudging Killua. Gon nodded happily. Killua sighed and let it go for the time being.

“Are we done now?” He asked, walking towards the cash registers. The other two in his party had no complaints about that, so they followed him. 

It didn’t take too long to check out, since it was still early, and they were soon carrying their bags back to their house. 

“Thanks for going with us, Melody!” Gon said, smiling at her. 

“Oh, it was no trouble at all!” She replied modestly. Killua thanked her as well and each of them took some of the bags she’d been carrying so they could go inside and she could head home until it was time to meet again.

“I’ll see you two later, then,” She said, waving a goodbye.

“Yeah, see you later! They called after her as she walked back to her house. They then went inside quietly, in case Kurapika had woken in their absence. Though, that was unlikely, as he had a tendency to sleep in until at least ten in the morning.

Leorio was still sitting at his laptop. “Hey kiddos,” he said when he heard them come in. “Put the bags in the back room. Anything you got can be taken to your room. We’ll keep the presents in there until we’re ready for them.”   
  
“Alright. Killua, I’ll put the book back there too, okay?” Gon didn’t stick around to hear what Killua had to say. He took off with what he bought and the book and went back to their room.   
  
“Did you get anything?” Leorio asked Killua, taking a break from his little project.    
  
“No. I have a better idea, though. I’m gonna make something for him instead.” He dropped the money Leorio had lent him on the desk. “You can have this back.”   
  
“I'm sure he’ll like that. Why don’t you go work on it? I’ll be busy for a little while,” Leorio said. 

“Okay.” Killua rushed to his and Gon’s room and grabbed his laptop and a blank CD as well as a spare case, and then went to the living room to work. He grabbed his headphones off the coffee table and plugged them in while he started up his computer, and then went to grab some paper, a pencil, and his colored pencils so he could begin working. 

The three of them that were awake in the household had been working for half an hour in solitude. That is, until Kurapika woke up. Then, each of them stopped (except Gon, who was nearly finished with his project). 

“Hey, Sleeping Beauty,” Leorio said, getting up from his seat in front of his laptop and walking over to Kurapika so he could press a kiss to the top of the blond’s head. Killua could be heard gagging from where he sat in the livingroom. Kurapika just laughed a bit; Killua always had over-the-top reactions to most things, especially when he saw the two of them being affectionate. Of course, Leorio and Kurapika knew that Killua meant nothing by his reactions and comments, he was just being dramatic, and so it was fine with them. 

“What’s everyone doing? Where’s Gon?” He asked.

“Gon’s working on a project in our room right now, he said he wants to be alone until he’s done,” Killua supplied an answer. Leorio was amazed at how easily Killua could fabricate a lie at the drop of a hat. It also made him a tad uneasy, but he was willing to overlook that for now.

“What do you wanna eat for breakfast?” Leorio asked Kurapika. He shrugged. 

“Just coffee is fine,” he said.    
  
“No, you’ve gotta eat something. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!” Leorio retorted.

“I guess scrambled eggs sound good,” Kurapika said in thought as he walked towards the kitchen. 

“Okay, I’ll make them for you,” Leorio said, already grabbing the eggs out of the fridge. 

“I can make them, it’s okay,” Kurapika said. 

“I wanna make them for you. I don’t mind one bit!” Leorio smiled at him. Kurapika cocked an eyebrow. Usually, Leorio was never eager to make food for anyone but himself, but today he was different about it. Kurapika decided to overlook it. 

He listened to the sizzling of the eggs in the pan as he made his coffee. Killua had begun working on his project again.    
  
“Whatcha workin’ on, buddy?” He asked Killua from the kitchen.    
  
“Nothin’,” Killua responded as he rapidly typed on his laptop. He picked up his paper and pencil and began scribbling away. Kurapika just shrugged. No one could get Killua to talk if he didn’t want to, except maybe Gon.

“Eggs are done, Pika.” Leorio placed a plate with scrambled eggs on the island.    
  
“Thanks, Leorio,” Kurapika said. He finished making his cup of coffee, then walked over to where Leorio was washing dishes in the sink so he could stand on is tip toes to kiss his cheek.

“No problem,” Leorio said with a dopey smile on his face. Gon came out of his room and walked to the kitchen as Kurapika sat down with his breakfast and coffee. 

“Kurapika! Good morning!” Gon said, rushing to greet Kurapika with a hug. Kurapika laughed and hugged Gon back. 

“Hey, buckaroo. What’s up?” He asked.

“Nothing much,” Gon said. He let go of Kurapika and sat beside him at the island while Kurapika ate breakfast. 

Leorio and Killua continued to work on their projects, unbeknownst to the two of them.    
  
“Hey, Kurapika, wanna take a walk around town today?” Gon asked. He was really hoping Kurapika would say yes, he needed to get him out of the house for a bit. 

“Is there anything you wanted to see in particular?” Kurapika asked as he finished the last of his eggs and coffee. 

“Hmm. No, not really. Just wanted to take a walk and I wanted you to go along,” Gon admitted. 

Kurapika smiled at him and ruffled his hair. “Sure, Gon. I’ll go with you. I just need to shower and get ready and we’ll head out, okay?”   
  
“Alright!” Gon said. He jumped down from his stool and sat beside Killua on the couch. Kurapika took his dishes to the sink and washed them before heading to the bathroom to shower and get ready for the day. 

“What are you working on Killua?” Gon asked.   
  
“You wouldn’t tell me, so now you have to wait to see, too,” Killua said in response. He shifted so his screen and paper weren’t in Gon’s line of sight. Gon frowned and decided to ask Leorio what he was making. 

“You’ll see at the party, kiddo. It’ll be a surprise for everyone, yeah? Won’t it be more fun that way?” Leorio said. 

“I guess so,” Gon said. He didn’t have anything to do while he waited for Kurapika. He grabbed the TV tuner and turned it on. He went channel surfing while he waited.    
  
“Gon,” Leorio said, trying to get Gon’s attention. 

“Hmm?”   
  
“Keep him out of here for at least three hours, okay?”   
  
“Gotcha!” Gon said. 

Five minutes later, Leorio finished his project and printed it. He then went to the boys’ room and put together his present for Kurapika. 

Another five minutes passed, and Kurapika was ready to go.    
  
“Are you ready, Gon?” Kurapika asked.    
  
“Yeah!” He said. He got up off the couch and clicked the TV off. 

“Do you want to come with, Killua?”    
  
“No, I’m okay.” Killua didn’t even look up from his drawing. 

“Is he okay? He never passes up an opportunity to get out of the house,” Kurapika said with a concerned look. 

“He’s just drawing, he’ll be okay! Let’s go,” Gon suggested. Kurapika shrugged and followed Gon down the street. 

“Where to first?”    
  
“Dunno. I kinda just wanted to go window shopping,” Gon said. Kurapika nodded, understanding the feeling. He preferred to window shop rather than go into the stores. There were always too many people in the stores for his liking. 

Meanwhile at home, Killua was coloring his drawing and burning the playlist he had made onto the blank cd. Leorio was in the other room on the phone with Melody, seeing if she could come over to help them decorate for the party. 

It didn’t take Killua long to color his drawing how he wanted it. He started to put together the CD case. The drawing was the album art, and the actual CD itself held some of Kurapika’s favorite songs and ones he’d listen to with Killua, as well as some recommendations based on those songs. 

Melody rang the doorbell as soon as Killua set his present down next to the other two presents. He ran to answer the door. 

“Hi, where can I put this?” She asked, holding a beautifully wrapped present in her hands.

“I’ll take it, come in!” He said, stepping aside to let her into the house. He then hurriedly put her present with the others and rushed back to meet Leorio and Melody in the kitchen. 

“Killua and I are going to make a cake for Kurapika’s birthday. Can you set up the snacks, drinks, and utensils?” Leorio asked Melody, who nodded and said she could do that. 

They worked mostly in silence, save for Killua’s complaints or questions.   
  
“I’ve never made a cake before, Leorio,” he said.    
  
“Neither have I, but there’s directions on the box, so we just have to follow them. Shouldn’t be too hard, yeah?” 

“Yeah, let’s do this!”   
  
By the end of it, they and the kitchen were covered in baking materials. Killua could feel all the flour his hair was holding, and hopped in the shower quickly while Leorio put the cake in the oven and set the timer. 

When he came back out, Leorio and Melody were hanging up decorations around the kitchen and living room. They seemed to have the wall and ceiling decorations covered. 

“What can I do?” He asked. 

“Get the cake out of the oven, then blow up some balloons while we wait for it to cool so we can frost it,” Leorio instructed. Killua nodded even though Leorio’s back was turned towards him.

He did as he was told with no difficulties. He wondered how Gon and Kurapika were managing in town.

-

As it turns out, they weren’t doing too bad. There was a lot less people than Kurapika expected there to be. Window shopping was also making him feel at ease, as was the energetic little ball known as Gon who was right beside him. 

They were passing by a jewelry store when something caught his eye.

“Gon, wait,” he said. He was nearly pressed against the window as he looked at the bracelet that had captured his attention. It was made of thick, braided string, and it had three little star charms on it. He didn’t know why, but he really liked it. 

“Do you want that?” Gon asked him, pointing to the bracelet. 

“Oh, no, it’s fine, I was just-”   
  
“You do! I can tell by the way your eyes were shining when you looked at it. I’ll get it for you! I brought my money with me, so it’s no big deal,” Gon said, stepping inside of the store. 

Kurapika followed him inside. “Gon, that’s not necessary, it’s alright.”   
  
“I want to, though!” Gon said. He went up to the service desk and asked where he could find the star charm bracelet that was on display in the window. The employee at the counter directed him to where it was located. 

“Thank you!” He said cheerfully, and they smiled and nodded before returning to the service desk. Gon grabbed a bracelet and headed to the cashier. “I’ll take this, please!”    
  
“That’ll be 1155 Jenny,” the lady said. Gon nodded and got out that amount from his wallet and handed it to the cashier, who accepted the cash and gave him the bracelet in a little bag.    
  
“Have a nice day!” Gon said.    
  
“You too!” They said back. Gon and Kurapika exited the store and Gon gave Kurapika the bracelet. 

“Thank you, Gon. I appreciate it a lot.” Kurapika said, smiling. He put the bracelet on and patted Gon’s head. 

“It looks good on you!” He said. Kurapika laughed and thanked him again. 

“How long have we been out walking around? My feet are getting tired,” Kurapika said.    
  
“Well. we left around eleven,Gon said while he checked his watch. “And it’s two now, so about three hours. I think we can head back now, there’s nothing else I wanted to see. Unless there was something else you wanted to look at?”    
  
“No, I’m content with just sitting around at home for the rest of the day,” Kurapika said. 

“Okay, let’s head back then!” Gon texted Killua to tell him that they were coming back. 

-

“Guys!” Killua said, getting everyone’s attention. “They’re on their way, we should hide!” 

“Alright, get in position everyone!” Leorio said. Killua hid behind the couch, Leorio stood in the hallway just outside of the view of someone walking into the house, and Melody hid behind the kitchen island. Leorio shut off all the lights, and they sat in the dark and quiet for five minutes while Gon and Kurapika returned home. 

The doorknob turned, and all three of them held their breath. Kurapika stepped inside, followed by Gon. 

“It’s so dark, where’d they go?” Kurapika asked as he flipped on the light switch.   
  
“SURPRISE!” The three of them yelled and came out of hiding as soon as the lights came on. Kurapika had a startled expression on his face, but upon seeing the house decorated and everyone gathered here for him, he began to laugh. He was happy that everyone had put in the effort to be there for him on his birthday. 

_ Leorio must have told them,  _ he thought to himself. 

“Thank you guys, really, you didn’t have to do that for me.” Killua and Gon moved to give him a hug, and he wrapped an arm around each of them. The two of them were giggling, and Kurapika didn’t have a clue as to why, but he giggled right along with them. 

“Killua and I made you a cake, with Melody’s help,” Leorio said.  
  
“Oh, they made the cake, I only frosted it,” Melody said humbly.    
  
Kurapika smiled. “Thanks to all of you,” he said. “Do you guys wanna eat some now?”    
  
“Yeah!” The boys yelled. They let go of Kurapika and raced to the kitchen, itching for Leorio to cut the cake.

“Not just yet, we have to sing first! Melody, can you light the candles?” Leorio said, bringing everyone into the kitchen. 

“Sure!” Melody began to light the candles. Leorio pulled Kurapika close to him and squeezed him in a hug. 

“How was your outing?”    
  
“It was good, Gon bought a bracelet for me.” Kurapika showed the bracelet to Leorio, and Leorio smiled.    
  
“It looks good on you, Pika. Look, Melody’s done! Let’s sing!”    
  
The four of them sang “Happy Birthday” to Kurapika, who was smiling more than he had in a long while.    
  
“Now you gotta blow out the candles and make a wish!” Gon said. Kurapika nodded and closed his eyes. He didn’t really have a wish, because this moment was all he could have ever hoped for. Nonetheless, he pretended to make a wish and blew out the candles afterwards.   
  
“What’d you wish for?” Gon asked. Killua lightly slapped him on the back of the head. 

“What was that for?!” He asked Killua. 

“The wish doesn’t come true if he tells you it!” Killua responded. 

“Now, now, let’s not fight,” Kurapika said. Leorio agreed with him and began cutting the cake. He handed the first piece to Kurapika, who waited until everyone else was served to dig in to it. 

They ate cake and chips and drank a lot of soda, it was practically their dinner. Then, Killua remembered the gifts and ran to get them. Kurapika was confused about his sudden disappearance until he walked in with an armful of gifts.

“These are for you,” he said to Kurapika as he set the gifts down on the coffee table. Everyone migrated to the living room to watch Kurapika open gifts. The boys sat on the ground while the adults sat on the couch, Leorio on Kurapika’s left side and Melody on his right.

“Sorry they’re not wrapped, Kurapika!” Leorio apologized.  
  
“I don’t mind,” Kurapika said with a smile. “Hmm, who’s should I open first?”   
  
“Mine!” Gon said.   
  
“No, mine!” Killua said right after. 

Kurapika laughed. “I think I’ll pick one at random,” he said. “If only to avoid you two bickering all night,” he added as an afterthought. 

He picked up the wrapped present first. It had a sticker on it, reading “To: Kurapika. From: Melody.”    
  
“Thank you, Melody,” he said and she nodded in response, a silent way of telling him to open the gift. He carefully took off the wrapping paper and set it aside, seeing a box under it. He opened the box carefully too (when later asked why, he’d say that the box could be reused, and he didn’t want to pick up little pieces of paper). Inside was a new sweater that Melody had seen when she was shopping the other day, and just had to get it for him.    
  
“Thank you so much! I love it!” He said, giving her a side hug, which was a bit awkward due to their position.

“I’m glad! You have to wear it next time you visit,” she said to him. He agreed.

“This one next!” Gon said, pushing a little green bag towards Kurapika. Kurapika took the bag and took out the tissue paper. Inside was a bunch of his favorite sweets, along with a letter. He read the letter first before taking out any candy, and by the time he reached the end he was almost in tears. Not sad tears, no, he was just extremely happy that Gon had taken the time to write what he did. It was a very heartfelt letter, and Kurapika could tell he took a lot of care to write it neatly and put a lot of thought into it. 

“C’mere, Gon,” he said, opening his arms. Gon scrambled up to give Kurapika a hug, and ended up sitting in between he and Leorio.    
  
“Thank you so much, really,” he said to Gon.    
  
“You’re welcome!” He said. 

“Alright, my present next!” Killua said. Killua handed a messily wrapped, thin square to Kurapika. 

Kurapika graciously accepted the gift and carefully opening it. He found a CD case inside, with a beautiful drawing of a mountain range in the dawn of day. He could tell Killua hand drew it; Killua’s coloring style was unique to only him, and Kurapika could point it out anywhere. 

“There’s a note inside and a tracklist on the back, you can listen to it later,” Killua said. Kurapika thanked him before opening up the CD case. On the CD, Killua wrote “Happy birthday Kurapika!” in his messy handwriting. On the back of the drawing was a note. It was short and concise, but it got Killua’s message across and once again had Kurapika in an intense state of happiness.

He needn’t tell Killua to come to him when he opened his arms; Killua was more adept at reading others than the average person. So Killua unashamedly climbed up to hug Kurapika, and ended up sitting between his legs on the floor. 

“Just mine left then, Pika,” Leorio said with a soft smile.

“Guess so,” Kurapika said back with an expression mirroring Leorio’s. He opened the card first, and upon reading the message inside, actually did burst into happy tears. He grabbed Leorio’s shirt and pulled him down for a kiss, making Gon duck so he wouldn’t get in the way. Leorio was flustered when Kurapika pulled away, but he was happy that Kurapika was, too.

“Oh! He got you that book you’ve been wanting to read,” Melody said.    
  
“So he did,” Kurapika said back. “Thank you, Leorio.”   
  
“It’s no problem,” Leorio said. 

“Well, I’ve got to be heading back now. I need to feed my cat before he wrecks the house. 

“Alright. Thank you for coming over and celebrating with us,” Kurapika said. 

“Thank you!” The other three chimed in unison.    
  
“Anytime, anytime,” Melody said. “Goodnight, everyone!”    
  
“Night!” They called to her as she exited through their front door. The four of them then spread out on the couch and settled in to watch a movie. 

“We should let Kurapika pick since it’s his birthday,” Gon said. 

“Oh, I don’t mind what we watch,” Kurapika said, not really having watched many movies other than what he watched with Gon, Killua, and Leorio.

“Can we watch Monsters University?” Killua asked. Gon gave him a funny look. “What? I’ve never seen it!”   
  
“It’s so old though!”    
  
“Gon, you can pick the next movie,” Leorio said.    
  
“Okay!” He said. He grabbed a big bowl of popcorn for the four of them to share while Leorio started the movie. Killua moved to sit between Kurapika and Gon, and cuddled into Kurapika’s side.    
  
“Are you tired? You must have been busy, huh,” Kurapika said, rubbing his back.    
  
“Yeah, but that’s okay. Did you have fun?” Killua asked in return.

“It was a blast. Thank you all again.” They all said “you’re welcome” before Gon hushed everyone, because the movie started playing. 

Halfway through the movie, Gon and Killua both dozed off, and Leorio looked like he was about to any second. Kurapika would have moved and taken everyone to bed, despite it only being around six o’clock, but Killua was practically a human space heater, and he was too warm and comfortable to bother moving, so the four of them all ended up sleeping on the couch.   
  
Luckily, it was a big piece of furniture, or else they’d all have ended up on the floor by morning. That was avoided though, to Kurapika’s relief.    
  
It ended up being the best birthday he’d ever had, and he was extremely grateful to his friends, no, his family, for making it happen.

**Author's Note:**

> really self indulgent also the longest thing ive written in months i am t r a s h for the idea of leorio and kurapika being gon and killua (and sometimes alluka's) guardians it gives me great joy  
> i spent six hours on this im dead  
> please tell me what you liked about this or what i could improve on! you can leave a comment or message me on tumblr (@flightless-crow) or instagram (@flight.less.crow)


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